Ratings & Reviews for Garmin Instinct 2 Solar Tactical Edition Smart Watch with Step Counter, Heart Rate Monitor and GPS Enabled

Rugged and tough

It's solid works well in all environments. Hopefully it lasts several years.

Great battery life

Does everything as advertised. I needed a watch with a long battery life and this watch is hands down the best in terms of longevity. Out of the box it was 96% and just charged it since then (35 days ago) and that was just standard power use. It's extremely user friendly too so no worries if you lack tech experience.

Great watch but very dim

The only downfall to this watch, which I love, is that the screen is hard to see compared to the non-solar edition. If you are outside, the sun keeps charging the watch extending the run time between plug-ins. Functions all work great.

Hate it

Controls are difficult to remember. A touch screen design would have been better.

lots of menues

Ramdomly loses data to the app. Often see no data recorded or will not sync. Still getting used to all the push buttons.

Switched from Apple to this and I love it!

I bought this a few weeks ago and fell in love with it! I love that don’t have to charge it every night and I can actually use it for sleep tracking and workouts! The durability is also very impressive! I’m outside in the sun a lot so being able to actually see the screen without having to cover my wrist is a big plus! It’s a very comfortable watch to wear and light weight compared to Apple Watch

Great battery life

I love battery life, gps, and working out with it. I did not like that the 2nd edition came out 1 week later at the same price. I would have waited 1 more week had I known.

Great product, rugged device that can take some abuse on the day to day. Great battery life, excited to get out with it during hunting season.

Upgrade from the original instinct tactical because this flushes out the remainder of the feature set (VO2 max, SpO2, etc.). Great size, clean and strong look but not flashy, strong feature set that allows you to get things you don't use out of the way, and improved sensors with better data analysis on the app. Holds up to abuse well, battery life is great and the solar extends that out even further. I'm not into expensive stuff, but this watch has been worth it to me.

Almost Perfect

The only way this watch is lacking is the sleep tracking. They need to get rid of the scheduled sleeping entirely and just rely on sensor tracking. If you operate on an erratic sleep schedule like i do, you have to sacrifice a lot of battery life to get all of needed tracking. They really need to auto detect sleep and turn on the sensors when its actually detected.

Great watch

Had this watch now for a more than a month. The battery is amazing. Weeks without charging! Data for health and fitness is fantastic. GPS is spot on and dozens of other features. I will say low light it can be tough to see but that would be my eyes not a flaw in the design. Great buy!

Good watch for the price!

I bought this 2 weeks ago and still haven't had to charge the battery. There are a lot of features for sports and stuff like timers, alarms, stopwatches and Garmin Pay. This is a very good solar watch with a solid price tag. I got the black color and it looks really good. The screen is very clear resolution and pretty good for a non color screen. I would recommend this watch!

Amazing

This watch is simplistic in design, but it is a powerhouse in function. It allows me to view texts, emails, and notifications while still having the look of a GSHOCK. The battery at full charge lasts almost a month and it recharges throughout the day. my biggest complaint is that the screen is a bit fragile as I got a small scratch in mine running a course my first week owning it, but still 10/10 would recommend!

Incredible Update to Instinct Series, But...

I'm reposting my review of the Coyote/FDE version of the Instinct 2 Solar Tactical here as well in the hope that Garmin sees it (and "takes action").... There is absolutely no question that this Instinct 2 Solar is a quantum leap forward from the original Instinct (and even the Instinct Solar). The "guts" inside bring it closer to the Fenix/Forerunner. And the Tactical version is no exception. Worth every penny. but.... The "but" is the "stepping on rake" tactical watch face mistake Garmin mad...

Incredible Update To Instinct Series, But...

There is absolutely no question that this Instinct 2 Solar is a quantum leap forward from the original Instinct (and even the Instinct Solar). The "guts" inside bring it closer to the Fenix/Forerunner. And the Tactical version is no exception. Worth every penny. but.... The "but" is the "stepping on rake" tactical watch face mistake Garmin made. In this new version there is a huge amount of wasted space in the upper left where the only customization is which bar graph you want to see (solar int...

This watch has more features than I will probably ever use. The measures I have noticed are very accurate. I have had the watch 20 days and still have not charged it. I have had a couple of days of being outside and the solar power works. I like that i can get text and phone notifications but can also turn them off like in sleep mode. I know I will love it more once I have time to really use it.

Excellent watch

I absolutely am in love with this watch. The battery life on it is great with everything I use it for don’t have to charge it. It’s durable, lightweight, great wristband, very easy to operate. All around my favorite watch so far

Just right

Replaced a old Garmin with this one. Wow. Nice. Fairly easy to operate even for a “vintage” age guy. Excellent so far

Completely outclasses the Apple Watch for my use case. The month long battery life keeps me going without interruption and I can track everything I need to. Only downside is that the rep counter and work/rest on the strength workout require a lot of user interaction; would prefer a more seamless experience. Large feature set is great, but settings aren't in a centralized place.

Unsatisfied with watch

I had it a week and a half, the battery only lasted 5days after full charge! Then had to charge twice in one day. Tried to reset the type of face I wanted but would not save/hold it. Sent back to Garmin for full refund.